Homestuck Refrain
by terminallyCosplay
Summary: Set after Sburb ended, the children find themselves back on an Earth completely reset. Those who didn't play don't remember the game at all, and the kids who have played Sburb are affected by amnesia that varies by how far they made it through the game. After 3 years, the now 16 yr olds find themselves meeting in Houston for a music festival, only to find that they can remember.
1. Chapter 1: Boys

**Homestuck Refrain:**

_This is it. The game has been won, you and your friends are safe. You look at each other, and it's decided. There is still an Earth to go back to, if Jade is right, and lets face it she normally is, you will be fine. The prize has been handed over to the trolls, the battered remains of a large group. You're all battered. You smile, hugging them, and say "See you soon."_

_It should be soon. _

_It's never soon. _

_You go back to earth, but it is not the earth that you expected. _

_Now, we meet up again with our heroes three years later, on an old familiar day._

**Dave (1)**

It struck deep rhythms inside him. It elicited movement and thought further than what he had expected. The reverberations ran through him like so many ripples of sound waves, the bass rose, building, then dropped. It dropped hotter than any shit the world should ever have heard. Ecstasy filled the room and it was like every motion elicited further joy and pleasure than anyone had ever had the right to experience. His name is Dave Strider, and he will always be the knight of time.

At this moment, he is free from all the bullshit. Everyone had told him that he was wrong, that they were wrong. "Sburbia" was the newest track to the never ending soundtrack to a life shattered by the demons in his head.

Everyone was dead. It happened suddenly, between the brief flashes of strobes. The bodies changed. They lay in mangled piles across the dance floor. Blood seeped out of them, pooling up faster and higher than the bodies should have allowed. It came in a rainbow of colors that had no right being in blood. The bodies were floating now, coming closer. His own corpse lay, beautifully split open, riddled with bullets and covered in a peppering of orange feathers-

The taste of bile alerted him to wake up as he stumbled out if his bed, sheets clinging to his sweaty, thin frame. He sprinted down the hall, bursting into the bathroom and throwing up into the toilet. His entire body was shaking, his eyes closed tight in pain as more puke splashed into the bowl. The shower turned off, alerting him that Bro was in the bathroom already. The curtain opened and Bro hastily wrapped a towel around his waist, looking concerned at him. He reached out through the steam that was surrounding him, touching his forehead.

"You're burning up, Dave."

He must have just gotten back from another night working the club and had been getting the grime and layers of sweat and spit off of him. Dave flushed the toilet, looking up at his exhausted brother's face. It spoke a silent tiredness brought on by this shit. A tiredness that Dave had caused him over the years.

"It's nothing," Dave finally answered, his voice sounding whiny and exhausted as well.

"Come on, up we go."

Nothing was more embarrassing than a 16 year old about to get picked up by his naked older brother, so as soon as Bro's hand touched his shoulder he shrugged it off. Standing, he leaned against the counter for support, trying to pretend he was fine. He started brushing his teeth, eyes closed to protect him from the harsh glare of fluorescent lighting above.

"Was it another nightmare?" Bro asked.

Dave gave him half a shrug in response, which Bro took to mean a yes.

"Worse than before?"

Dave's lack of answer as he spit his toothpaste out and started rinsing with mouth was answer enough. The nightmares had been bad before, but they had returned shortly after his 16th birthday in December. They had gotten worse as the New Year occurred, and as April started, they had gotten significantly worse. They had become a nightly occurrence.

"We need to go back to the therapist," he said, his voice tense as he watched Dave.

"No."

Dave's answer was short, his voice full of venom. There was no way that he'd go back on his own. He'd have to be dragged, screaming. They didn't want to know the truth. They wanted to all pretend something else. It was all a hoax put on by teenagers. Teenagers who were seeking attention.

Sburb wasn't real.

He walked out of the bathroom, looking down, feeling cold and sore. His brother followed him, padding softly on the thick carpet. Dave glanced back.

"Go put on some fucking pants, Bro." Dave said. His voice sounded exhausted as he opened the door to his room, completely dark. Just like that place had been. Dark, cold. Lonely. "I'm going to back to bed. Flip this hot mess before it's too late."

"Alright, Dave."

It was just another lie on a long list of lies that Dave had told over the past few years. Bro knew it was, but the fucks were nonexistent when it came to this one. This wasn't one that would cause much trouble. As Dave shut the door, he turned to leave and get dressed in his own room. The last three years were hell for both him and Dave. He shut his door and leaned against the frame. Exhaustion clouded his thought, and he briefly thought about calling "Dad" in order to figure out if this was happening with John.

Dave laid back down on his bed, not bothering with the sheets. It was getting harder to sleep. He checked his iPhone, seeing it was just past four in the morning. There was only one person who would understand how he felt that he could still talk to. Only one who might comprehend.

And it was his birthday.

**TurntechGodhead began pestering ectoBiologist at 4:13 AM**

**TG:** happy birthday dude

**TG: **rake in any sweet loot?

**John (1)**

He is currently at a tea party. For some reason, the cat one keeps insisting that he eats cake, that he has to have it. In his dreams, he never refuses cake. The tall one with the broken horn and teeth and glasses has refused to let her go. You've only ever seen one of him, and he often has the cat one on him.

John Egbert has been dreaming of them since he was 13 years old. However, he has never been able to remember their names.

Their voices tune in and out of focus. They were never wrong, but they were never quite right either. None of them were correct, he was certain of that. It was like a radio that was a couple of degrees off the right station or at the end of its wavelengths. It was more like his piano, when the strings had the tiniest hint of begging to them, needing to be tuned soon. The colors were off like an over exposed film or bad lighting or an over eager flash bulb.

The color red was missing.

He didn't know why he thought that suddenly. There was no reason around him that would make him want the color red, that made his heart beg for it. There was a tap on his shoulder, followed by the lowest, quietest of purrs. The hand was ridiculously warm, far warmer than a human's would be. That was how trolls worked. He leaned into that hand, closing his eyes, trying not to break down inside his dream. The feeling of forgetting came over him. It was an unshakable amnesia.

A black sweater, grey skin.

His eyes opened and he looked out into his bedroom, almost completely unchanged in the years. The same posters were there, though he had covered them up with new ones. That stupid birthday present was stashed in the confines of his closet. He never wanted to see it again. He could hear the wind outside, a constant gusting, as if lulling him to sleep. He let out a shaky breath, the posters in his room rustling. The dim morning light lay across his face, and he was vaguely aware that his pillow was wet. He had been crying again. Most nights fading to morning ended this way, passing into the haze of memory and the fog caused by antidepressants and whatever other medication they deemed fit. Most dreams ended painfully for him.

It had already taken the better part of three years to remember them at all, and still he knew that there was a lot missing, and one figure in particular. Their names were foreign, unintelligible sounds, and unpronounceable tongue twisters that always left his mind hurting. They were riddles in the dark to him.

"I want to stay dreaming."

The words are out of his mouth, even though he hadn't thought them. They were true however, forming from a twisted piece of his shattered heart. He wanted to curl up and die upon realizing that they were unbearably true. As time passed, his life seemed better asleep, with them. Whoever they really were, they were better than being in the haze of drugs and pianos, show time medleys and blurred hours of endless school work and running. Running had become his new hobby, simply because he was so used to attempting to run away now. He reached for his glasses, almost not willing to start another day.

The sound of glass shattering made him sit up quickly, putting the glasses on his face with more force and less accuracy than he should have had. He stared at the door, not moving, until his dad yelled at him. Barking filled the air, and John audibly groaned. At least now everyone would have a shitty morning.

"BOY! YOU SHUT HER UP NOW!"

Even yelling, his dad's voice had hints of pain and sadness, as well as a large dose of frustration. John wasn't even sure when he had stopped getting upset at it, and had fallen into a numb acceptance of their new family life. He got to his feet, feeling unsteady and ungainly. Mentally, he was 19 years old. Physically, his body had just reached his 16th birthday for the second time. It had grown differently this time, as if the lack of flying had disrupted its growth, and every inch he gained was painful. It felt like fire on his nerves.

More drugs, more medication.

"YOU HEAR ME BOY?"

"Yes Dad!" He calls back.

He slides on his shoes, doing anything that would help ease the pain this morning, and left the dark confines of his den of wallowing and into the brightly lit hall. Sometimes, he had dreamt about flying as well. He missed it, wanted it, needed it, but it wasn't like he could tell his dad. His dad had made it clear that none of this was real. His dad didn't believe him.

At least he wasn't alone.

He pushed the door open to what had once been the guest bedroom, and now belonged to one Jade Harley. She was constricted by her sheets at the moment, wrapped tightly around her body. Growls and whines escaped her throat as she fought against them. They were inhuman sounds that terrified his father into no longer coming in here to wake her up after and during her nightmares. John didn't mind them, not after living with them for six years now, by their count at least.

"Jade."

His voice sounded exhausted. He sat next to her. It had been three years since his ecto-sister had gone grimbark, and she still suffered the side effects. She let out another pathetic whine. It had taken convincing to get his dad to believe about the girl on the island who needed their help after the session. It had taken more to convince her to let her move in with them, but he and Dave knew that she couldn't be out there alone. They were going mad enough with people around them, and she was in isolation. She didn't deserve to be alone. He gently shook her shoulder.

"Jade," he says a bit louder this time.

Her eyes open at last, tears spilling out, and her body shaking. Her breathing came in ragged gasps and she finally looked up at him. Her green eyes contorted, mirroring the deep rooted heart ache. The two of them untangled her, and she hugged him tight, crying bitter tears of the heart broken. They held each other for what felt like another eternity, another cycle of three years, and she finally managed to mumble out something in a raspy voice.

"Happy birthday, John."


	2. Chapter 2: Broken Girls

_Chapter Two: Girls_

_Contains blood, scarring, and references to cult practices. _

**Rose (1)**

Bottles and empty glasses litter the floor of her bedroom. Some of them are broken, most are intact. Rose Lalonde is the only one who hasn't dreamt of them since turning 16. She finds the dreams too painful, and instead has drunk her way to the point of passing out every night. Her mother, afraid of what might happen otherwise, has allowed this to go on. She may not approve of it, but this Rose terrified her.

Rose is currently passed out on the bed. Her mother enters her room quietly, looking into the cool darkness to the lump on the bed, surrounded by glinting bottles. She carefully walks over the bottles, picking up clothes and depositing them in the hamper or folding and putting up the clean ones. She is methodical, far more sober than she had been and far more sober than Rose. She sighed, going to her closet and pulling out a garment bag, laying it over a nearby chair. Pulling out several pristine outfits, she packed them before once more turning to Rose.

"Rose, time to wake up! Today's the big day."

She briefly wondered if her daughter would even remember what the big day was at this point, let alone the date. Rose mumbled a response, turning over, and sending a cascade of bottles down to the floor.

"You're seeing _John_ today," her mother told her.

She sat up as quickly as a blacked out 16 year old could. Her mother smiled at her, watching those glazed eyes attempt to focus.

"…Egber?"

Her voice sounded exhausted, pulling from the depths of her consciousness that she had slowly been drowning.

"Yes, honey. Egbert."

Her mother then proceeded to pack up her violin, and set it out in the hall with her garment bag for safety.

"John, Jade, and Dave will all be there, remember?"

"Shrider."

She slurred so easily, staring at her mother from the depths of her alcoholic state, trying to put pieces together meant for a sober mind. She blinked owlishly, before giving up and looking around in her bed for a bottle with alcohol in it, only finding empty ones. Her mother sighed, patting her head.

"Rose, go take a shower. It's time to get ready."

"….kay."

Rose stumbled out of the room to do what she was told. Her mother sighed again, sitting down on Rose's bed. At least while she was gone, she could clean the room. It's true, she could just simply stop buying the booze, force her girl to sober up, but that thought terrified her. There was something wrong with Rose.

On April 13th, three years ago, her daughter had woken up screaming, flying through the house. She demanded that her mother hand over her copies of SBurb, of a game that had never existed, failing at the beta stage. She swore at her, and then proceeded to break down sobbing. It wasn't her daughter, it was a foreign creature that had set up home in her. Her Rose had never acted this way, not even as a toddler. She had spiraled through hysterics, slamming her fists against the floor and screaming a name over and over again. She had screamed until she had gone hoarse, sobbed until she couldn't breathe anymore, and just lay on the floor.

Kanaya.

There was no record of this girl or that a girl like this ever existed. There was no "Kanaya Maryam" out there. Rose spent weeks, shut up in her room, searching for her. She spent it drinking more to fill the emptiness, disappearing from the world. She destroyed the house slowly. She broke every fancy wizard, tore down the shrine on the fridge, and burnt her books.

She covered up the paint on her walls, threw out her knitting, and only wore the colors yellow, orange and jade. There always had to be jade, no matter what she wore. Rose Lalonde became a master of the occult, a true mistress of the night. Her drunken ramblings had made her relatively famous. Paranormal researchers hung onto her every word, they followed her like she preached a new religion. She became most knowledgeable about vampires, her knowledge seeming to come naturally to her, along with her research and her findings. She disproved many myths about them, and even uncovered a few cults who practiced blood-letting and drinking.

Her violin could no longer sound happy. Its very soul had become mournful. Its very essence has become depressed.

Rose Lalonde was a shadow of the girl that she used to be. There was no light left in her. Sburb had ended, Kanaya was gone, and she never wanted to remember. She had only lost the thing that she cared for most, and nothing could fill that hole in her heart.

Rose Lalonde was the saddest girl in the universe, and no one could convince her otherwise.

**Jade (1)**

She is on an airplane and this is way way way way way too exciting, she realizes. There is a wish deep in her mind that she could wag her tail but it has been ages since she had a tail to wag. Bec had to stay behind this trip but he will keep her new dad safe while she can't protect the house. That is Jade Harley's job and she loves it. She briefly climbs into John's lap, but luckily he doesn't wake up as she wants to explore the plane. He has her safely tucked into a window seat, and that is probably good because it's a long way from Washington to Texas to not be allowed to play and explore.

She's not all dog, but she's not all girl. She's terrorized psychologists enough that her Dad doesn't bother finding her new ones but they love giving her drugs but she's smart and gets them out of her food like a smarty should. She sighs, settling down, when the nerves of distress reach her and she knows that her brother is upset. She turns to his face, hurriedly wiping away the tears that pool from underneath his eyelids. It wouldn't be good if their teacher caught him crying. It'd be very bad indeed. The two of them were almost not allowed to go on this trip, and it had taken months of being on her best best best behavior in order to be permitted. She knew it was more her fault than his if he hadn't been allowed to come, and John needed this.

She knew that she couldn't help John the way that she used to, even though she wanted to. He was caught in a dream. Most nights he cried, and she did too. She looked out the window again, imagining how good the strong wind would feel on her head. How good it had felt, standing on the helm of a ship, blasting through the void as she watched the nothingness race by. Jade Harley was still smart- she was incredibly clever and her mind was still hard wired for science.

She turned to John, hurriedly wiping away more tears as her doggy nature faded, leaving the cool, calm, and collected 16 year old girl in its place. She sighed. John's dreams had been slowly getting worse over the years, but nothing compared to what had happened the last few weeks. She, of course, was already ahead of him in her own dreams, but knew she just couldn't tell him what the answers were. It wouldn't be fair to him.

John had really suffered, and so had she, but the two of them had suffered in different ways. She sighed, looking down at her hands and lower arms. Now that she wasn't as tan, the scars on her body were harder to see. She couldn't actually remember any of her time on the island after the hard reset of their game. She had simply woken to her consciousness one day, strapped to a bed and having John there, his head resting on the bed. His hand had been over one of her own heavily bandaged ones. He had fallen asleep there, and she had really wondered who he was for a moment.

There had been growling and barking until he looked up, alarmed, and in that ridiculous just finishing puberty voice of his, she remembered him.

"Jade!"

"John?"

Jade wondered what she had done on that island for those two long weeks. While Sburb had returned to her memory, those weeks never did. She had been there for weeks, healing, trying to get better, and John had convinced his father to not only take her in but adopt her as well. She had left the island- warm, familiar, and now incredibly foreign to her- and had moved to her new "home" in Washington. It was cold, it was rainy, and it felt caged. However, there was something there that she needed, far more than she had needed Bec, for Bec hadn't kept her sane.

She needed John Egbert.

Her own memories of being grimbark seemed skewed and confusing. Her time serving her master, The Condescension, felt foggy. She wanted to remember, she wanted to forget. One thing was certain. She couldn't remember the trolls very well. She weirdly remembered The Condesce and the alpha kids, but trolls?

There were no trolls that were right. Maybe it was because of her now partial colorblindness, but she just knew there should be grey. The idea of grey consumed her, and it kept her up at night. It ate at her like a cancer. It was a particular shade of grey, different than the others. This one was special.

She smiled to herself, pulling out the stuffed animal of a crab and petting it. It had become a sort of comfort object to her. Like most of her stuffed animals, it showed hints of her chewing on it, though she had at least taken care to use patches to fix him back up. She really wanted to grab a snack right now and eat some Snausages, but that was out of the question. She knew better than to actually eat them in front of people, especially their teacher. She glances back to John, who is sound asleep, though he still looked sick and tired.

She knew she didn't look much better. Her body felt foreign to her, it felt painful, and she didn't like it. It was thinner than before, taller as well, and now, it was covered in scars from running wild on an island. She didn't look like a wild animal, but she was one.

Now, she had to do what she knew to do as a sister and John's service dog. He needed to get to Dave Strider, who would be able to understand him more than she did. The clever girl faded as she saw a bird flying below, and she was once again way way way way way too excited to be trapped in a window seat on a plane somewhere on her way to Houston. She reached into her bag, grabbed a milk bone, and quickly ate it before anyone could see her. Her butt kind of wiggled as she wagged a non-existent tail and her crab dangled out of her mouth.

Jade Harley thought herself to be a very good dog indeed.


	3. Chapter 3: The Cancer

_No major trigger warnings in this chapter._

**John (2)**

John Egbert of course was more responsible than Jade Harley, who almost was forced to wear a child leash to the airport. He had taken care of packing their stuff in the car, making sure that she had packed more than a microscope and dog toys, and had remembered to bring her flute. He was, as always, at the mercy of whatever pianos they had gathered for the event and for the rehearsal spaces. Luckily they were pretty good about it. He and Jade were about to go to Houston, Texa,s and by some weird luck, Rose Lalonde played a violin perfectly drunk or sober, not that she had played sober for a few years. This would be the first time the four of them would be together since they were fourteen, and two years was an eighth of their lives, so that was a long time to not be together. It was even better that today was his birthday.

John Egbert missed his friends of course, mainly because they still believed him. They remembered Sburb as well.

Sburb wasn't a closed incident. It was reported to be a scam set up by kids, but the parents of those who made it through a long amount of time in the game had to admit that there was something wrong. Most of them wanted to believe it was false though, mainly because they didn't want to believe such horrid things were adult wanted to believe they had died. Dad didn't want to believe them, even if John grew three inches overnight and he knew about Jade Harley, alone on an island. Who now barked and was known on occasion to chase a car or two as if that was normal. At least they had managed to get that under control.

Basically, they wanted to pretend that nothing traumatizing had happened to their kids in a video game that had destroyed the world once upon a time. At least, until they had to admit that their child was certifiable.

John Egbert not only had played Sburb, he also really liked shitty movies by Nicholas Cage, Starbucks and had been known on occasion to throw tantrums in his driveway over stupid shit. His memory was probably more whole and more broken than the others because of the fact that he managed to glitch himself in the game. He wanted to remember, but was only able to forget.

Right now, however, he had to push the thoughts of Sburb and his friends to the side because he was holding Jade Harley's hand in an airport, simultaneously looking for their teacher and trying to figure out if he was supposed to get their tickets or if he had already gotten them.

To be fair, their teacher wasn't exactly thrilled with bringing them along, and seemed almost too thrilled that they had requested to not stay at the hotel. It could be because his school was bringing six students and two teachers already, and that the two students going to a host house would save on some pretty expensive hotel feels. He figured it was mainly because of Harley, who kept trying to slip off since her dog senses seemed to be taking over. He kept a firm grip on her as they made their way through the airport with their luggage.

He'd be in the air soon with Jade, and the two of them would land in Texas about half an hour before Rose.

"John!"

He turned to see his teacher, already with the other students around him.

"Alright, good, you're here, let's get everyone checked in then, and we'll head up to our departing gate. You have Jade? Very good."

It didn't take long for them to get through luggage checks but John had to check Jade's carry on again. Even though he had checked it out before they left, she tried packing another box of dog treats with her. He promised to buy her some when they made it to Texas, but for now, all he wanted to do was get on the plane and get there.

It didn't take too much effort getting them checked in, though they were asked if someone had smuggled a pet because Jade somehow snuck her favorite chew toy back into her carry on (she was still a very clever girl, John had to remind himself). Soon enough, they were relatively safe with Jade smushed and belted into a window seat as John took the aisle. No one really cared, no one wanted to sit next to them. He waited till they got into the air before making himself busy, getting out a book and his sheet music to study. He put on some headphones, given to him on his 15th birthday by one Dave Strider, studying the cadence and the pauses in the music.

Eventually he fell asleep, even though that was the last thing he wanted to do. Even in closing his eyes, he was flooded by images of trolls.

In his dream, he was playing that song. The refrain. His hands ghosted over the keys, but even in his dream, he knew that this piano was out of tune. It sounded like he wasn't really playing this piano. He kept picking up the slightest hints of feedback. He groaned, and wanted to stop playing. His hands hesitated on the keys.

"WHAT THE FUCK, EGBERT. KEEP PLAYING. IT'S THE ONLY USEFUL THING YOU'VE DONE SINCE LEAVING, SHIT STAIN."

He jarred the notes, his breath catching in his throat. That voice. There was nothing out of tune or out of focus about it. He whipped around, almost falling off of his stool because in front of him, clarity was achieved for the first time. This troll was the right color. He was grey and John knew that this grey was right even though this troll was hiding the color red.

The troll crossed his arms and huffed, looking away. The cancer symbol on his sweater was even correct. John Egbert swallowed, standing up so quickly he stumbled and floated up and over to him. He reached out his arms, trying to hug him, only to jar awake, his sister shaking at him.

"John, no no no please don't cry the teacher, he's going to notice and we can't have that." She whined out, looking at his face in concern. He looked at her, his blue eyes staring at her green ones.

"Jade I dreamt of him."

"Him who?"

"I dreamt of the cancer."

**Dave (2)**

He is now Dave "Twerk Team Captain" Strider whenever he works a shift. Since losing that bet with Bro, He can be sure to find himself twerking it out almost nightly. Today's selection was Lady Gaga's _Boys Boys Boys _and he was well aware that he might hate his brother forever for this, judging by the large amount of flashes that are going off on the dance floor. Of course that's until Bro starts putting singles into his skinnies, and Dave can't help but laugh. He got him a job at the club as well, partially to get Dave out of the house for once and partially to keep an eye on him. It was fine as long as Bro was near him or he was up on the booth, away from the crowd.

Dave glanced down at his watch then waved, pointing towards the workers door. This was it. His friends- the only ones he had kept from his strange former life as the pinnacle of make-me-a-meme hipsterdom, for having friends in real life was way too mainstream – they would be arriving today. He grabbed his stuff from his locker and grinned, walking out into the fading sunlight and swapping shades for even better tinted ones to keep the light out of his eyes.

"DAAAaaaAAAvEEVEEE"

The squeal of fan girls was probably worse than the smell of skank that he tended to get accumulate at work no matter what time of the day he worked. Dave honestly was more than a bit shocked that his bro managed to get management to agree to let him work there, even though he was only 16. Whatever, no skin off his back. Bro was connected in all the right places after all.

Until like a forty year old woman would grind on him and he had to stop and wonder what the hell she drank that made him look like a legal adult.

Besides the fact that he was already ridiculously tall to begin with, and that he had facial hair coming in as of this year (finally). Coupling that with the piercings he got anywhere you could get away with at 16, and that his bro would also let him get (he drew the line at nipple piercings), and half a homemade tattoo that he wasn't willing to admit to anyone that halfway through he pussied out on. Those were things that probably made him look a few years older than what he was.

Again, no real skin off of Dave Strider's back.

He avoided the fan girls, skipping his cherry red convertible for once, mainly because that only had two seats and no room for his back pack let alone luggage for three. Well that was the plan, he had no idea if they made it through. For all he knew Jade could have been arrested for chasing planes or trying to pack a rifle, and Rose may have been detained and transferred to rehab instead. They were just normal sixteen year old problems for people who were really nineteen and dead inside.

At least that's what he liked to tell himself. He sighed, getting into the pick-up truck instead and turned the engine over, buckling up and starting to drive. He'd need to get on the highway in order to make it there on time. He narrowly avoided the leeches as they attempted to latch onto his Strider swag and charm as if they were vampires and he had the choicest of bloods. Not that they haven't bitten him before, causing unavoidable debilitating flash backs of a girlfriend from outer space that supposedly never existed. The girl who had to lick and taste everything. Old What's her name. That was the worst part. No matter what, no matter how hard he thought, Dave couldn't remember their names and that fucking hurt a part of him that he never was able to understand. Of course, he could always just name the trolls, as they were figments of his imagination. First he'd have to check with the others to see if they were okay with him naming them. Maybe they could name four each to keep it fair.

It didn't make sense. He could picture her red shades, the exact curve of them, and her sharp teeth and long, course tongue licking over them-

The blaring car horn reminded him that he was actually driving in heavy Houston traffic instead of sitting at home. He needed to get his head off of her and pay attention. He needed to forget his "imaginary" ex-girlfriend for a bit.

What even happened? They were all supposed to end up together in the end. Jade was so sure of it. At the end of the game, they were supposed to create a new universe for them all to live in. Together. The trolls needed to take the prize because they needed it to revive their race. No, instead, the four kids got vaulted back to an Earth that was foreign, that was painful, that despised them and Dave was torn away from that nubby horned _dipshit-_

He pulled over to the side of the road with such force that a car horn blared at him, swerving into the next lane. Dave ignored the fact that he almost caused a pile up because he was unable to breathe correctly. He slumped over the steering wheel, aware that this was the first time he had managed to remember one Karkat Vantas perfectly. Three years of fighting, three years of trying to remember. He felt his chest seize up and his vision went blurry. He was on the edge of another anxiety attack. He needed to calm down and get to the airport. The others would end up waiting. No, he was too busy crying his eyes out in a pick-up truck over _Karkat. Fucking. Vantas._ He tried pushing him out of his mind while simultaneously wanting to drag him in and tie him down there. He took a deep shuddery breath, trying to calm down enough to drive.

He was overwhelmed as it all came flooding back like a pained memory. Every troll, dead or alive. Aradia, Sollux, Tavros and Vriska stared at him through pupil-less eyes. Nepeta was being held by Equius. Now in death, he was the moirail she had deserved in life. Kanaya with her ridiculous tortured grammar and horrid names for punctuation just seemed to haunt him like an overprotective mother. Gamzee Makara, that stone cold mother fucker. Feferi, Eridan.

_Terezi._

His mind barely whispered her name, almost refused to acknowledge it. He felt his heart break and he felt his heart mend in the same moment. He really was crying now. He was ready to break down and die. He clung to the steering wheel and managed to flip on his hazhards, as he took another deep, shuddering breath.

And then there was Shouty McHot Dog Nubs himself. Dave remembered promising him that he would not be forgotten. He remembered the promise for all these years but the troll it was about had escaped him. He had spent hours on end, trying to fill in the holes until his mind literally ached. Now, driving to the airport he had been hit like wrecking ball into an old building.

At long last he pulled himself upright, able to convince himself that he was okay to drive. He whispered a small thanks to the genetics that made him light sensitive and had to wear sunglasses. At least now Dave wouldn't have to explain to his friends why he had been crying his eyes out going down the highway. Having to inform John Egbert that he had been crying over Karkat Vantas was something he didn't want to do.


	4. Chapter 4: Hangovers & Layovers

_Featuring Lalonde. _

_Yes, It does snow in Northern New York in April. _

**Rose (2)**

The pounding started in her head somewhere around the time that Rose Lalonde realized that she was on a plane in the air. She looked around, trying not to panic, when she found a folder tucked in with her. She opened the black music folder to its velvet lined insides. Her mother had outdone herself this time, getting the shitty school folder lined, but Rose did appreciate the note inside it for once telling her exactly what the fuck was happening.

_Rose Baby! _

_Hi good morning honey it's good to have you reading this cause srsly you were like soooo wasted! Anyway, I hope you realize that you're now on a plane, and you'll be heading to warmer climates!_

The next few lines were blurred out and faintly smelled of martini.

_Woops! Spilled my drink a lil bit but no worries it'll be dried out by the time you read it! Anyway, congratulations on your excellent violin playing this year, baby girl! You're going to do great at the Music Festival down in Houston-_

Music Festival? Since when was she even auditioning for these things or remotely interested in them? These were more of a John Egbert thing. He'd do well sitting with a bunch of neatly dressed high schoolers playing instruments. At least she was going somewhere warm, it would be nice to get away from the foot and a half of snow.

_-and I'm going to assume that you're not going to be thrilled about that because it's what's best for you right now silly! You actually are really going to love being there, trust me! This year, you, Jade, and John all got in!_

Rose stopped reading, and she scrambled around before shutting the window shade to the plane. Above the almost permanent cloud cover, there was no rest from the sunshine. She groaned, putting the tray table down and putting her head on it. As she did, she found that there was a water bottle and a bottle of travel pain killers in there. She took a few, then chugged her water. She found a carry-on bag with her, and she dug in it, finding the purple headphones that Dave had given her. The noise around her melted away and the pounding in her head seemed to lessen. She let out a deep breath. These would have come in handy that one time on L-

Her mind screeched to a halt and she returned to her letter. Her hands were trembling. Dave, Jade, John. She had to focus on the three of them, because apparently she was going to be spending the next six hours sober and she couldn't take that. She turned on some music (according to the sticky note, she had the seven songs she had been practicing on her violin on there). She sighed, and then went back to the letter, looking at the pink lettering.

_I'm sure you don't remember talking about it at all and I hope by now you found the painkillers and water I got for you. I got you all situated hopefully without too much trouble. Anyway, in case you missed it, you're going to HOUSTON. Since you're the only kid from your school going, *wink wonk* I got it so you're going to be part of John's group and you're going to be staying at the Strider's place! Isn't that nice! I'm sure they made room for the three of you to live there for a bit. _

Rose put the letter down, her heart filling up with happiness. She was going to be with the three of them! She was going to be staying with Dave and Jade and John! She hadn't properly prepared a prankster's gambit, nor did she have proper defenses against them. If John had kept it up, he'd probably be light years ahead of the rest of them.

But, she didn't know.

She panicked. Were they even her friends anymore? She hadn't spoken to them hardly, and if she did she certainly didn't remember it. She bit her lower lip, looking through her bag, hoping to scroll through her pesterlog. She pulled out her phone and saw that it was already locked on airplane mode. That's right. No texting and flying. She sighed, setting it down, hoping that they wouldn't hate her.

Until she saw the date.

"FUCK."

She hadn't gotten anything for John's Birthday, she hadn't thought about it. She swore again, knocking her water bottle over and spilling it. She leaned back, taking a deep breath as a flight attendant came over.

"Is there a problem, Ms. Lalonde?" he asked, looking at her.

She slid off her headphones, blushing, looking down.

"I'm sorry, I just spilled my water, it surprised me and I almost got it on my sheet music." She managed to sound calm but inside she felt horrid. Luckily, she had a few connecting flights so she could manage to hopefully snoop around during a wait.

"Right, I'll be back with a towel and we'll get it cleaned up."

He wasn't irritable, he wasn't cheerful, but as he walked away, she could hear him mumbling about needing to post about underage minors on planes when they'd clearly been drinking.

She sighed, moving her stuff and putting it safely in her carry on. As she did, she saw a blue packaged with a green ribbon on it, and an unsigned birthday tag. It too had one of the sticky notes attached to it and she peeled it off, reading it. On it was a detailed description of what was in this present, and the tag was left blank for her to just sign.

At least her mother was keeping tabs on her friends when she couldn't. She should have been, she knew that, but it was just too painful to remember anything especially K-

She swerved her thought process, narrowly avoiding catastrophic meltdown as the flight attendant returned, handing her a towel since he'd have to get in her lap to clean it up. She carefully wiped up the mess before returning it to him, her hands shaking.

"Are you alright, Miss?" he asked.

"No, I'm not."

"Is there anything I can do for you?" he asked, managing to sound concerned.

"I'm afraid that you can't fix the saddest girl in the universe, sir," she said, smiling at him.

* * *

She managed that flight fine and even got to the correct connecting flight in the city. Her heart felt heavy, and she felt increasingly sick, wanting a drink, wanting to get back under before it was too late, but as she hit hour three she hit a wall. There was no saving her from the melt down. She sat there, looking at the wall, her violin music playing in her ear as Kanaya just filled her up. Her skin felt cold, she felt her heart rate quicken as she remembered those black and jade lips biting at her, holding her as they-

She did manage to quiet down the memories. She couldn't remember anyone else really, but three years in the luminescent embrace of Kanaya Maryam made her heart practically stop in pain. Eventually, she cried herself to sleep.

"Rose This Behavior From You These Past Three Years Has Been Deplorable I Must Inform You That You Have Been Causing Me Great Stress."

"M'sorry, Kan I just got busy feeling sorry for myself."

She opened her eyes up, looking across the satin sheets to her eyes, those eyes that were starting to fill in. She and Gamzee seemed to mature faster than the other trolls they had been with. It seemed surprising to her how fast she remembered Gamzee Makara. She sat up, looking around.

"No If You Look Too Much You Will Have To Go Rose And Then I Will Be Left Here Alone Again And You Have Already Been Gone So Long."

"What do you mean? I mean seriously Kanaya it's just a dream."

She made a note that she'd have to check with her friends who researched divination and discuss vampire alien girlfriends with them.

"Rose No You Need To Stop-"

A screeching filled her ears as she blinked and found herself looking at the wall of the plane again. She dug around, finding more of her painkillers, attempting to take quite a few, until she noticed her mother had been kind enough to only pack a safe amount. She sighed, taking the remaining ones, and leaned back.

Kanaya Maryam was taking over her mind again, and she didn't like it.

She landed a couple hours later, and she was aware that she had the worst headache of her life. She went into a shop and bought some cheap aviators, putting them on her head and unzipping her coat. Houston was already too hot for her, she decided. She went, and wanted to find her luggage and her friends.

"ROSE ROSE ROSE ROSE."

The collision against her side sent her slamming to the ground, and the licks at her cheeks informed her that either a hairless dog or Jade Harley attacked her. She opened her eyes, glad it was the latter. Jade had grown up as well, and seemed to be doing rather well for a girl who believed she was still part dog.

"JOHN JOHN I FOUND HER I FOUND HER!"

She heard swearing, and an unfamiliar yet similar voice to one she used to know so well. She got up, helping Jade up as well and keeping an arm on her. John Egbert walked towards her, stretching out at about 5'10" towering over her 5'6" self. She looked up, blinking in surprise.

"Dammit Jade the teacher's screaming for us to go back to him!" he said, groaning.

He then looked surprised, looking at Rose, actually looking at her, and she offered him a weak smile. He looked upset, and she noticed that she hadn't been the only one crying during the flights to Texas. He smiled at her, wrapping him tight.

"You look… different." She settled.

This time he had grown a couple inches taller, and he wasn't as thick as before. His arms weren't used to wielding the large hammers from in the game. This life had been almost sedentary in comparison for them. He nodded.

"You did too."

He really meant that she was shorter instead of his equal in height. She knew it too, having been drinking had added more curve to her than before, and had stunted her growth the tiniest bit. Jade Harley was nothing like she had been before. She was almost sickly thin, and there were still scratches and scars over her, even after three years. She however, didn't seem to care as she was munching on a milk bone from her carry on. She raised an eyebrow at Egbert, and he shrugged.

"It kept her from chasing the planes." He mentioned casually.

Almost too casually.

"It's good to see you two again," Rose said, smiling. "And happy birthday, John." She kissed his cheek.


	5. Chapter 5: Alphas

_Introducing four new characters that I've been wanting to drag in for a while._

_Part Alpha, part Harley._

**The Alphas (1)**

"AW ROSIE! Was that your firsht kiss?" came a voice, slurring and purring at her.

John was the first one to whip his head around. He turned with such force it cracked and a few voices laughed. This girl was an equal in height to Rose, but she looked more fit, even if she did seem to exude the same alcoholic nature. She smiled, her purple scarf wrapping around her neck. She leaned against one of the males with her, but John was too busy staring_ at_ her. He turned to Rose, then turned to the female before him.

"What the hell." He managed, his gaze still looking at the new girl.

"Rosie, you didn' tell yur friends about your big sis im hurt." She said, pouting.

"Roxy you knew she wouldn't. You even blathered about it on the flight in," one of the males said.

John turned his gaze to the blonde she was hanging on. This guy towered over him, and he wasn't exactly short. He wondered it if it was because he spiked his hair back like that. He popped his orange collar, his face turning to line up with his. From what John barely knew of the anime world, this guy was a hard core raver. He was wearing bright orange clothes that were tight fitting, and his shades looked like they were so sharp they should've been confiscated on the plane. The male nodded towards John. He nodded back, his neck feeling stiff.

"Oh, hush you two! You're embarrassing _my _Johnny and his friends and that won't do!" Another girl came forward, and went right over and hugged him tight. "This sugar cookie belongs to me and I'm not going to share him with any of you!"

He wrapped his arms around the now plumper Jane Crocker. He smiled at her and she stood on tiptoes as she kissed his cheek, causing him to go red. She looked at him with her caring eyes framed by her oval glasses, still lingering her touch. There was so much caring for him in that look that when she smiled, his heart seemed to melt a bit still. She let go a bit, looking back at her friends.

"You actually know this kid?" The orange one asked, turning his gaze towards her.

"Honey, John here and I have been together since he was just starting out. He's got some gifted fingers when it comes to playing the piano," she said, defending him. "John's going to be real competition for the senior solos if that teacher of his ever quits treating him like a child."

"Jane don't talk about him like that, he's not a bad guy," John said.

"No, he's just held you back thinking you were fragile." She replied.

The teacher in question came up, looking at the standoff happening. The alpha kids were well known, coming from a prestigious school from New York City. He had this group from Washington, from a wide area. Jade and John had been his students for three years now, and he knew that the two of them, if given the proper materials, would be well equipped to have the solos at the concert that concluded the festival.

"John, Jade, Rose, is your ride here yet?" He asked, addressing the three of them.

"Dave should be on his way now, sir, you should go if you want to make your check –in time," John told him, looking at the cute senior in his arms.

Once upon a time, he had had a crush on this girl. She had been perfect to him, comforting him at a time when no one else- not even his dad- would. She had reached out to the boy who had sworn that he knew her. Of course, she didn't know him. They were part of a different world, and no matter what they had done, she hadn't remembered Sburb at all. He wondered if it was a side effect of the mind control she had been under, much like Jade's.

"Alright. You have my number, you know what time to be at the rehearsal space in the morning. I'm going to hold you accountable for being there. You're in charge of this group."

He took the other four students, who merely looked away.

The six kids to be respected in the orchestra and big band sections were now gathered here. There were a few others they had to worry about, but the truth was with none of them playing the same instrument, there was no competition between them, save for pride.

"Are you done embarrassing me, sis?"

John's neck cracked loudly for the second time as he looked at Rose. She stood there, looking exhausted, looking too tired to be the Rose that he understood, because Rose has never mentioned a sister before. She had kept most of her family life quiet, but a _Sister?_

"Oh, honey you didn't tell your little friends after all. I guess I wouldn't either, seeing as I make up horrid stories about aliens and stuff!"

"Says the girl with an unhealthy obsession and romantic interest in a _Greek muse_," Rose tossed back.

"Wait, are you one of them, the kids from the hoax?" The blonde male spoke.

Rose opened her mouth to speak, but before she could answer, Jade Harley lapped them, looking at the strangers.

"Hi hi hi! You must be Dirk! And Janey! And Roxy and Jake! Jake Jake Jake Jake!" Jade spat out, practically running laps around them.

The group awkwardly froze, and Jade stopped, looking at John.

"Ah, the group who can't remember us." She said, ever so calmly.

The others stayed silent, stepping back and staring at her. She sat down, tilting her head a bit. Jade was having a lucid moment, where she was more the witch of space than even average sixteen year old girl. They looked at her like she was insane, but the truth was, John had a feeling she knew. She knew everything still, but never could express it.

"Well of course we don't, we aren't one of those idiots who played that game. You know, the one that doesn't exist." Dirk said. He put his arms around Jake and Roxy, practically commanding Jane with his gaze alone. She smiled at John, kissing his cheek.

"You and I will probably end up rehearsing together, so don't worry, we'll catch up this week," she said, smiling. "I promise."

She walked away, following Dirk as they went, tapping a faded blue headband. John smiled at her, waving goodbye. She walked on, looking down, shuffling a bit.

"Okay, what was that?" Jake said. "Kris Cringle on a cracker, that was right creepy how she knew our names."

"It's a Jade thing," Jane said. "You haven't met any of them before, but remember, Roxy and I _have_ met them before. Roxy's little sis always used to do that, before she… you know."

"Swam in the rivers of the bar and decided to float," Roxy said.

Roxy giggled, falling back and holding Jane's hand, nuzzling her. The bubble gum pink girl was only too happy to comfort her friend. The two of them knew about Rose and John, and by connection, Dave and Jade, though this was their first time meeting face to face. Jane smiled at her.

"It's true, John did the same thing to me once. The first time we met was right after it happened, because the contest was held the first week of summer vacation back then. He was the only kid from his school, and I remember he was sitting there crying at the piano, playing the same refrain over and over again until his teacher made him stop. I was sitting at the harp in the same room, and my heart just reached out to him. Everyone there new the song, it was the 'Showtime Refrain.' It was mandatory that year. So, I started plucking it out, and he just turned, looking at me."

"I know that song, Rosie used to play it along with 'aggrieve'. She would play them for hours after that day." She said with a nod.

"Right, but he looked right at me and frowned. He actually ran away, and for some reason, I went after him. He just was sitting in the hall, crying his eyes out, and asked only one question. 'Can't you remember me, Jane?' Then he just…cried more."

"Rosie actually screamed that I couldn't be real. Imagine that! Her own sister!"

"Great, a bunch of creepy freshman think we're part of that _absolute bullshit hoax._" Dirk said. "And with my luck, and their luck, I'm sure I'll run into him."

"The other Dave Strider." Jake noted.

"The one that stole my dad's name."

**Jade (2)**

As they walked away, Jade turned to John and Rose, her butt stationary. She smiled at them. "It's okay that they don't really remember, you know," she said. "Because technically, since we 'never' played, their universe never had to be created. It's quite simple if you get the gist of it. Or should I say the grist of it?" she asked, laughing.

"Come on, let's go get our luggage," John said, not wanting to really push it.

She led the way to their conveyor belt, Rose promising to meet up with them after she picked up her purple squiddle bags. Jade smiled, watching the belt turn. She watched the bags, watching the colors, though they were off in the real world too.

Red.

Dave strider's family couldn't be together, because they were too similar. Dave had had an alpha version born, it was him, so that Dave and her Dave couldn't be in the same family. They had formed separate groups and her Dave was perfectly content being here in Texas with his bro anyway.

Orange.

Dirk Strider had fractured off. He had been in Texas too, but after a few months in Houston, his Dad, also Dave Strider, had moved them to San Antonio to work on a movie. Since then, Dirk rarely called Texas his home. He was happy there, not meeting this Dave. The two groups conflicted, like a funhouse mirror. Dirk and Dave. Dave and Bro. Bro and Dirk. It looped, creating too much of a paradox too work.

Blue.

The first blue was darker, it was her John Egbert. Her moving in with him had cemented his reality and created the fracture. He already had Dad and Nanna, even though Nanna was still dead. Jade had moved in. It was necessary to fix the holes, of course.

Light blue.

Jane had to be different. She was now the heir to Betty Crocker of course, and while her family had started in Washington, she had gone to music school in the city. She and John had been the first to meet. She couldn't be involved, she had too much of Nanna in her, and the fact that her dad was a pale image of who John Egbert was before caused the rift. They were incompatible. Being in the same family- being related at all- would cause them both to go crazy.

Green. Her green. She could see it clearly at least.

She knew that John would save her, she knew that she wouldn't meet Jake again for a very long time. It was still endearing to see how her grandson was doing. She knew that his granny was her, had been her. She knew she couldn't be involved. There was no room for her in his life.

Dark Green.

It was sad to know that the other her was dead, and that Jake had lost his family. Word was that the Crocker family had taken him in and was paying for his school. It was nice to know that Jane and Jake had ended up being there for each other just like she and Egbert did. Of course, the rumors were different. Those two may end up together, unlike she and John. That would have been gross.

She grabbed her suitcase, sitting on it as John waited for his.

Pink.

Roxy was the only choice, really. Her mom and Rose were very different creatures in the end. This Rose was flawed, unfortunately. Broken hearts could do that. She and her mom were still different. Roxy wasn't even like her mom. The altered Rose ended up altering her. She had the memories of a lifetime growing up with Rose and Mom. They didn't have fractured timelines. They were pieces that mainly fit.

Purple.

Rose was purple, but her purple was sad. She had been broken too badly. She needed the other pieces. Roxy was needed there. Rose was too sad to remember, to broken too forget. She had conflicting memories. She remembered a world without Roxy, and she remembered a world with her. It was doomed really. They all were kind of doomed in the end though.

Jade smiled to herself.

The alphas didn't have their own universe, and her last wish as they walked through the portal would be that they ended up meeting each other again. She could wish for that. The others would be wishing to see the trolls again, and she knew by now that they would all be remembering Karkat Vantas.

She pulled out her phone. Even though they had never been able to meet she knew that it would work.

**gardenGnostic started Pestering carcinoGeneticist**

**GG: **Hi Fuckass! Hee hee!

**GG: **I'm sorry it's been so long :_B_

**GG: **But!

**GG: **The others are remembering now.

**gardenGnostic ceased pestering carcinoGeneticist.**

Jade couldn't remember if there was anything else to do.

Then again, there was a ball rolling across the floor and it was going to be hers!


	6. Chapter 6: Reunions

**Dave (3)**

After his crying jag, Dave somehow managed to get to the airport. He parked between the two companies they were flying in on, hoping that he'd see them come out. Unfolding his visor, he opened the mirror and looked at himself, checking his eyes. To him, it didn't seem to obvious that he had been weeping over a troll. He turned off the engine and pocketed the keys, intent on going in and finding them, intent on finding luggage and helping them drag it out. Luckily it was a warm day, so they could just pile it into the bed. He hopped out of the car, and the second he did, he was hit by a raven-haired missile in a poodle skirt.

"HI DAVE HI HI HI HI HI HI HI HIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIHI"

"hey jade" He managed, trying to breathe. The air had been knocked straight out of him, along with maybe his spinal column and skull. He put his hands on her back, fighting possible black out. He saw feet approaching through the haze.

"Hey Dave!"

He smiled at the sound of that geeky voice. It was the only way he had ever managed to describe John's voice. At least it was no longer that high pitched garbage he had to suffer through twice. John held his hands out to Dave, who instantly decided that John could leave some of his ass on the hot Texas pavement too. He yanked him down into the pile, forcing him to land unceremoniously on his lap. The three of them sat there, not making much noise. He was aware that normal people would be laughing, he was aware that he should be laughing, but laughing was hard to do.

Getting up, he looked to see that John's face and cheeks were pretty red too, redder than they should have been.

"shit have you been crying already you just got here bro i am not having this touchy feely shit going on"

John scowled up at him, and Jade laughed.

"DAVE, YOU'VE BEEN CRYING TO!"

Yup, she was still definitely part dog because nobody else would be yelling that out loud. He felt his ears heat up.

"Aww bro, do you need to talk to.. *hic* a psychologish?"

He looked up from Jade and John to his ecto-sis, who looked like absolute shit at that moment. There was still some slurring prevalent, but Dave was willing to bet that she was having one hell of a hangover for being sober for the first time in a while. Probably close to all three years. She forced a smile and he felt pity for her, standing in those cheap aviators and having the hangover of a life time. He got up, then helped John and Jade to their feet.

"alright load her up so we can get on to my place"

"Oh, Dave! That accent of yours! I almost forgot how gloriously Texan you are," Rose teased again.

He rolled his eyes, then patted the truck bed.

"luggage and bitches in" he said, grinning at them.

They obliged quickly, most of them too delicate for prolonged exposure to heat (especially Rose and John, from the cold and rainy corners of the US). Dave climbed in last, starting up the engine and starting to drive. He made sure to turn the AC on, regretting his lack of jacket.

"So…" Jade said.

"so" Dave said the word, sounding almost finalized, his feelings on edge.

"Who's going to mention them first?" John asked.

"You apparently," Rose said, her voice tired. "Dave what's the chance of your brother buying-"

"none whatsoever" Dave said, glancing back at her in the mirror. "he refused to have any in the house after they released us i think he thought that i would pick up drinking and like be always drunk"

It wasn't a complete lie, based on his behavior those first few months. He did anything he could to just forget everything that happened, to stop the horror terrors that plagued him every night-

"I remember when John! When John got back! He always ate his dad's cake! But his cake is good!" She said, speaking in quick bursts.

"is that normal" Dave asked, glancing at the two of them in the back seat.

"Only after long trips." John said, his voice sounding pretty exhausted. He had managed to get shot gun and was stretching out.

Dave probably allotted that he sounded exhausted a lot, trying to take care of himself and Harley. Dave remembered joking about getting her a child leash and a shock collar to keep her at bay.

"good to know," Dave said in response, getting back onto the highway. "and yeah egbert you really trimmed down in two years you were really…"

"I admit that I resembled a real oink beast." John responded.

Dave's first response was to slam on the breaks, but he managed to barely refrain from that.

"That's something they'd say," Rose said with a faint sound of tears in her voice.

"i finally remembered their names" Dave admitted.

"I remembered them on the flight here," John added.

"Me too!" Jade practically barked.

"I dreamt of them this morning, I suppose ." Rose said.

"john you little shit we were waiting you to get back to sixteen as well thats really fucking annoying and unfair" Dave said. "jerk"

"Dick." John responded.

"cock sucker"

"Smuppet sucker."

"nook whiffer" Dave tossed back.

The insult just slid out. It was one of Karkat's favorites. Instead of getting somber, the truck burst out laughing, and Dave found himself crying again because it was getting hard to breathe from laughing too hard. A car drove past, being sure to offer as many birds as possible. Dave personally didn't give a shit, because the four of them were laughing and happy. It can't have lasted more than thirty seconds, but it was thirty seconds that the four of them had needed these last three years. Even if it was only his Earth buddies, and he knew that there were more missing from their circle.

Making it to the complex, he parked in the underground garage in his spot, getting out. The convertible wasn't back yet, meaning that Bro was still at work. He helped his friends with their luggage. It was hard to believe that they were lucky enough to all get into the Music Fest this year, and that Houston was the host city. If it had been somewhere else, Dave would have been the only one left out of the much needed reunion. He led them to the elevator and the four of them piled in, becoming a mess of instruments and baggage. Dave perched on top of John's suitcase, not having enough room to stand.

"john hit like the top floor will you" he asked, unable to lean over and hit the button himself.

John did as he was asked, and the doors luckily closed. After the familiar lurch (with some slight protests) the elevator rose. The doors opened up to a narrow hallway with only a few doors, and he led them down and into the pent house.

"its good to have you guys all here' he admitted off handedly.

"Yeah well, it's really good to be here Dave," John said.

"so uh we should probably get some dinner i mean im not sure what you guys would want but if you want we can like order pizza or chinese or something"

Dave wasn't sure how he felt about suggesting something so cheap as take out to his friends. They were probably used to organic food and home cooked meals. He knew that while he wasn't exactly hurting for cash, these guys actually lived like they had money. John shrugged eventually, somewhere between being let into the apartment and putting his bags down in the corner of the living room. Dave had managed to convince Bro to box up the smuppets for a week, plus lil cal. This Cal was different than before, but seeing that puppet had scarred him enough, let alone his friends.

"I can go for some low mein and chicken and pork and eggrolls."

John Egbert was seriously still a fat kid on the inside, not that there was any room for judgment or blame. After the game ended, Dave personally tried to eat two whole pizzas by himself every time Bro brought it home for dinner. After three years of meager eating trapped on a rock, he couldn't get enough of food. Eating till he puked every night, Bro had finally resorted to giving him rationed meals till that drive went away.

"Ugh I'm not so shure about this eating thing dave.' Rose admitted.

"rose eating fried food really helps with hangovers trust me" Dave told her, smiling.

The first few nights at the club were mad of binge drinking, drugs if he could snatch them, and of course smoking by the chain. Bro ended up having mercy on his ass, taking care of him after every episode till he realized that being taken care of by your brother was a lot worse than being sober. He flopped down on the couch, flipping through the numbers saved on his phone until he found a decent place, ordering enough food for eight adults. That roughly translated to two growing boys, a dog girl, and the drunk chick.

The four of them just sat around, not talking, until Dave finally broke the silence. He stood up, clearing his throat.

"right so rose jade you two are sharing the guest room and john we put a futon from work in my room for you to sleep on dude"

He led the girls to the "guest room" and let them in, simply a queen sized bed shoved in among the overflow of records and mixing equipment. He hoped that Harley wasn't going to be too destructive of the place and he then led John to his own room, the futon chilling out where his desk usually was, the equipment and aging computer placed on top of the dresser. Bro had moved finally, easing the almost daily panic attacks that Dave had been facing in their previous apartment. Everything was similar here, but he didn't wake up to nightmares where he puked until he sides ached and he couldn't move.

John put his luggage down, sliding it under the futon as Dave set up blankets and pillows for him. Dave flopped down onto the bed, and John sat next to him, letting out the slightest of yawns.

"so john now that were only sophomores again how does it feel to be thinking about college and shit"

"I don't think I'm going." He answered quietly, barely making a sound.

"what"

Dave had to admit that while college was far from his mind he figured that John would definitely want to graduate and go to college. He stared up at him, frowning.

"Yeah I said I don't think I'm going I mean I thought about it but I'm not really into it, so whatever. I don't want to spend another four to five years in school when I'm already feeling like I should be graduating and going out into the real world."

"man i know how you feel" he told him, sighing. "i dont even want to finish high school now let alone go on to college this is all just bullshit in the end"

"You want to know what makes it worse? I've seen Jane Crocker every year since we came back." He said, letting out the smallest of sighs.

"what no shit"

"She plays the harp like its nobodies business." He informed him.

"so shes like a superstar or what"

"Well one, she got into the music festival every year since like she was in grade school and two, she's gotten the solo every year as well so yeah she's pretty amazing. I had a crush on her before we played the game… now it's just awkward. She pretends that she doesn't know who I am either. I don't blame her. I saw Jake one year, and Roxy another."

"you saw roxy lalonde at the music festival in the past"

"Yeah, She plays the trombone. I can't believe that Rose didn't tell me they were _sisters _in this new Earth."

Dave sat up quickly, colliding into Egbert.

"ow shit wait roxy and rose are _related in this time line and she didnt tell us"_

"Yeah I know, but I guess it was just too hard for her to be that close to someone with no memories of it at all, you know."

"yeah i guess" Dave said, laying back down on the bed. "so back to a topic that doesnt make me want to drink what are you going to do instead of college"

"I think after high school or when I'm 18 I'm probably just going to take the magic show on the road and see how I do. Magicians are coming back into style and I'm getting pretty good at what I do,' he admitted, grinning, with the faintest hint of pride in his voice.

"you should make that one stupid ass suit again" he added. "you always looked good in stupid suits like that"

He nods a bit in approval and Dave nods along as well. The two of them both seemed on edge, but neither made any attempts to ask why. These three years have been about surviving without talking, no matter how fucked up that truly was.


End file.
